Sarfraz Issues a Stern Warning

Sarfraz Ahmed, the newly appointed captain of Pakistan One Day International (ODI) and T20 cricket teams has commenced his tenure with a stern warning. During a press conference he has clearly pointed out that the senior fast bowlers like Mohammed Amir, Wahab Riaz and Junaid Khan have sufficient experience and the time has come for them to start winning matches for the boys in green. He has also emphasized upon the point that there is a need for some of the other senior players to contribute better and that regular lapses in the field require to be taken care of.

Sarfraz has the honour of leading Pakistan to a successful under-19 world cup campaign and has led different sides with decent success at the domestic level .Therefore, captaincy is nothing new to him and his statement makes it obvious that he has no intention of mincing words or being diplomatic like his predecessor Azhar Ali who had to face criticism during his time as captain for being too lenient on some of his team mates.

Knowing the politics of Pakistan cricket it is obvious that the whole episode might not go well particularly, with those senior players who took their position for granted during the time Azhar was in command. However, since Sarfraz’s appointment was unanimously agreed upon by the bosses in Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and because he is pretty popular with the sponsors and general public, it is understood that the under-performers in the side have little choice but to either deliver the goods in West Indies or face the selector’s axe.

Moreover, the national coach Mickey Arthur and the chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq too seem to be in favor of introducing young players and hence, gradually shut the door on those who fail to perform on a consistent basis. This basically means than other the aforesaid fast bowlers the series in Caribbean should be a career make or break case for likes of Mohammed Hafiz, Shoaib Malik, Sohail Tanvir, Kamran Akmal and Ahmed Shehzad.

The author is Islamabad based and his areas of interest include religion, sports, entrepreneurship, advocacy, psychology, media and communications. He blogs at AfsharIqbal@bolojawan.com and tweets at @AfsharIqbal (https://twitter.com/AfsharIqbal).